One Friend at a Time
by izumi-chan7475
Summary: May Melbourne, age 15, lives a sheltered and uneventful life, living out her Pokémon journey through an MMORPG in the early 2000s. When her father is chosen to be a gym leader in a distant region, May fears her solitary life in Azalea Town is about to become even more of a drag. But very soon, her online life and waking world will become intertwined. (Expanded game world, 2004)
1. Game Freaks

May searched every social media website she could think of when she first learned of the move.

_Littleroot Town… does anyone even live in that place? _She thought, scrolling down the list of search results.

_Petalburg, Hoenn region… _May found dozens of teens her age living in the city her father was to become the gym leader of, which was the reason for her family's relocation. _Why can't we live there instead? _There were even two or three kids from Oldale Town, the slightly larger yet still tiny village north of Littleroot.

About an hour after scouring the web, May gave up the futile search.

"Dad, does Littleroot Town even exist?" May asked as she strode into the kitchen of their home in Azalea, Johto.

Norman Melbourne looked up from what he was reading at the table and turned to face her.

"Of course, May, you've seen the maps," he assured. "What makes you ask that?"

May took a seat across from him, folding her arms on the table and resting her chin on them. "Well, I can't find anyone my age online who lives there. Not any adults, either. The place seems like a real Gastly-town."

Norman folded up the brochure he was holding and handed it to his daughter. "There's a lot about southern Hoenn in this. I read that Littleroot has a population no greater than twenty – hard to believe the place is even incorporated. Maybe the people there don't use the internet as much as we do, we're so close to Goldenrod, after all." He noticed May's uneasy expression as she opened the pamphlet. "Small towns are nice, though. And we won't be too far from Petalburg."

May scanned the brochure until she found the tiny paragraph on Littleroot.

"Population: 18," She read out loud, wincing. "home to Professor Edward Birch, the Pokémon Professor of the Hoenn region." May set the paper down, looking across the table at her father. "You know him, right?"

Norman grinned, eyes filling with nostalgia. "Ed grew up in Goldenrod the same time I did. We were pretty close back then, but I haven't heard from him since he moved to Hoenn in the late '80s to further his studies. The guy was great, I'm hoping to reconnect with him when we move."

"Hm… if he's your age, do you think he might have a teenage daughter? Or son, even?"

"Possibly. But Ed's been pretty into research since he was even younger than you, so I'm not sure he ever got around to settling down."

"Oh. Alright, then."

* * *

_**Three days later…**_

May sat at the desktop computer she'd built with her friend Bugsy a couple of years prior, before he became Azalea's gym leader. Ever since her closest friend took up the responsibility of being the youngest gym leader in the region, May had been a bit of a loner in her small town.

_And Littleroot is even smaller, _she thought disdainfully. _I have to wish Bugsy a nice farewell before we move next month. _

May waited a few minutes as PMO loaded. Although a bit of a recluse in real life, she was adept at making new friends every day on Pokémon Multiplayer Online, an RPG in which one could become a virtual Pokémon trainer.

May was fifteen years old and still hadn't been allowed to receive her own Pokémon. Ever since an incident that occurred when she was a child between May and one of her father's Pokémon, she had been forbidden to become a trainer.

_Perhaps Professor Birch can convince the 'rents to let me get a partner who isn't virtual…_

The game had loaded and May selected a server. Ironically, the "Hoenn" server was running the smoothest with a moderate number of players online.

**SINGLE PLAYER**

**INVITE FRIENDS**

**RANDOM PARTY**

May decided to select "Random Party", as none of her online friends would be up at this hour. Nearly all of them were from Sinnoh or Unova, which were each a few hours ahead of the Johto/Kanto time zone. Her clock read "9:34 PM". Random was better than playing alone; after all, May had already claimed every single-player badge in the game.

**PARTY**

**-MayMel88 -drewgong52**

**-jaemolga -wurmple00**

May read the trainers' usernames as the virtual Pokémon center rendered. The chat opened immediately:

MayMel88: hi everyone 😊

Jaemolga: yello!

Drewgong52: what does everyone want to do tonight?

MayMel88: well I don't need to train much, so how bout some raids or a catching contest for the dex?

Drewgong53: sounds good.

Jaemolga: agreed!

MayMel88: wbu, wurmple?

Wurmple00: oh yea that's fine. Sorry, I was distracted by my dad, I should be good now

The four trainers spawned in the Pokemon center, their avatar names in green above their virtual heads.

-May -Andrew

-Jackie -Brendan

Andrew: okay do we wanna try a challenge or just chill at our own speeds?

Jackie: up 2 u guys. im pulling an allnighter and the sun is coming up, lol

Brendan: A challenge sounds fun.

May: yeah. How about boys vs. girls?

Jackie: hmm… that sounds a bit johtoian for me

Andrew: how so? We do that in kanto

May: fine then. wurmple, you seem challenge-ready. you can be with me

Brendan: I'm cool w that.

Andrew: alright. Jackie, its you and me.

Jackie: aight. Let's keep the party and chat intact, but we can head in separate directions. Brendan and May, you can choose where u wanna go first. Drew and I don't need a handicap

Brendan: Hey! :(

May: I see this as an absolute plus. wurmple, we're heading west

Brendan: …but the forest is east. Isn't the spawn rate way higher there?

May: dude, trust me. I have all 16 SP badges

Brendan: so do i

Jackie: ok chill you two. May chose west, we'll take east

Brendan: fine

**[ NEW CHAT: MAYMEL88 and WURMPLE00 ]**

May: yo

Brendan: wth? Did u just split the party?

May: dude no. I added a new chat window so the others cant see us conspiring

Brendan: oh

Brendan: I didn't even kno that was possible

May: uh heck yeah. Now see, I chose west bc the plains and coast have more variety than the forest. For the challenge, the # of species we catch is what wins us the game

Brendan: Oh wow I'm a dunsparce

May: nah this is kinda advanced, I don't blame u

Brendan: we need to talk in the OG chat so the other two don't suspect us.

May: okay but what's "OG"

Brendan: original gangster

May: ?

Brendan: i just meant original

May: ok then. U have some weird slang, kid, where r u even from?

Brendan: Hoenn

May: oh shoot im moving there

Brendan: dang, cool. It's a nice place sometimes

May: that's what ive heard

Brendan: Where u from anyway?

May: Johto, suburbs of goldenrod

Brendan: sweet. U should add me on here, our time zones are p close

May: 2 hrs, right?

Brendan: ya

May: sweet

**[ OG CHAT ]**

Jackie: okay how many pokéballs does everyone have? I have 42 greats, 12 ultra

Andrew: 9 poké, 15 greats, 11 ultra

Brendan: 51 ultra

May: 16 poké, 12 greats, 36 ultra, 1 master

Andrew: shoot, dude

May: what lol

Andrew: you didn't use ur master ball yet?

May: no lol im saving it for like a shiny graveler w selfdestruct

Jackie: v specific but ok. Everyone has enough pokéballs, so should I set the timer? How long?

Brendan: prob like 30 min, I forgot to eat dinner

May: lol

Jackie: that's fine. Alright bois, let's go!

Brendan and May spent the next half hour catching nearly every Pokemon species available on the two routes west of their starting point. Both of them had nearly completed the game's available Pokédex before the challenge, so they could view and keep track of all of the species in the area they had to catch. They also had a decent idea of how Jackie and Andrew were faring in the forest; all of their communication took place in the main chat. May and Brendan occasionally typed there as well, so the others would be none the wiser.

* * *

**_30 min later…_**

Both teams had arrived at the Pokemon center they started in.

Jackie: ok guys, we all need to display our PC boxes to the rest of the party. Set the timestamp to "past hour" so we can prove who caught the most unique mons during the game.

Andrew: on it.

**[ DREWGONG52 – PAST HOUR ]**

Lvl 5 - Caterpie

Lvl 8 - Sentret

Lvl 6 - Spinarak

Lvl 7 - Metapod

Lvl 8 - Bonsly

**[ JAEMOLGA – PAST HOUR ]**

Lvl 5 – Weedle

Lvl 4 – Caterpie

Lvl 9 – Kakuna

Lvl 4 – Sentret

Lvl 6 – Wurmple

May: okay, our turn

**[ MAYMEL88 – PAST HOUR ]**

Lvl 9 - Wingull

Lvl 5 - Sentret

Lvl 4 - Skitty

Lvl 10 - Pikachu

Lvl 10 - Tentacool

Lvl 7 - Zigzagoon

Lvl 4 - Pidgey

**[ WURMPLE00 – PAST HOUR ]**

Lvl 5 - Wurmple

Lvl 7 - Starly

Lvl 4 - Caterpie

Lvl 9 - Magikarp

Lvl 10 - Goldeen

Jackie: holy arceus

Andrew: … i forgot the fishing rod existed for a hot second there

Jackie: literally same, and theres like no water in the forest anyway

May: this is why I picked west

Jackie: alright, you guys won. Do you want some prize money or berries or anything?

May: I think I'm good

Brendan: Do u guys have any sitrus berries I can have?

Andrew: yeah I do

**[ ITEMTRANSFER – DREWGONG52 to WURMPLE00: SITRUS BERRY (x5) ]**

Brendan: thanks dude, gg

Andrew: np my guy

Jackie: ok guys I should probably sleep now, it's like 5am

May: what the heck where do u live?

Jackie: Unova…

Andrew: dude go to bed

Jackie: yeah I probably should. gg guys, feel free to add me

**[ JAEMOLGA HAS LOGGED OFF ]**

Andrew: well idk if you guys plan on doing anything else but I should probably sleep too, I have a gym challenge tomorrow

Brendan: well you can probably train with us to prepare before logging off

Andrew: no

Andrew: I meant irl

May: Oh shoot dude that's awesome. You said ur from kanto, which gym?

Andrew: Misty, im from cerulean

Brendan: whoa good luck man

Andrew: thanks. I hear she's a lot harder to beat than in the Kanjoh league here on PMO

May: yea wasn't she like the 2nd or 3rd one

Andrew: yea irl she switches up her team a lot

Brendan: damn imagine having urself put into a video game

Andrew: yea its kinda weird but everyone in the game has to give permission to be featured

May: that makes sense

Brendan: I srsly cant believe they added steven over cynthia for Sinoenn

May: y not? If hes anything like he was in the game irl, I think they chose well

Brendan: well he's pretty good but I hear Cynthia is an absolute beast

Andrew: yea brendan same but i heard cynthia didn't want to be in the game

Brendan: o shit

May: well that surprises me, im moving to hoenn and I hear steven doesn't really like to be on TV or anything. dunno why he'd want to be in the game

Brendan: I just want them to add more regions, Unova's battling culture is surpassing Hoenn and even Kanto, and I hear Alola might be adding a league branch soon

Andrew: woah that's wild, especially since they're like… four islands or something

May: dude I just want a pokémon irl

Andrew: you don't have any? How old are you?

May: 15

Brendan: same and I've had a mon for like four years

Andrew: woah im 17 and ive had pokémon since I was 10

May: it's a long story guys I don't wanna talk about it

Brendan: ok, sorry

May: ur fine

Andrew: ok im gonna get some rest, you guys can friend me if you want, I really enjoyed hanging out w yall.

Brendan: bye dude, good luck tomorrow. Get back to us about it if you see us online!

Andrew: will do!

May: yeah man good luck, you'll be great.

Andrew: thanks, cya around.

**[ DREWGONG52 HAS LOGGED OFF ]**

Brendan: Do you want to do anything else tonight?

May: I don't know. I have to start getting my old stuff together to sell or donate before the big move

Brendan: oh yeah I forgot about that. Are you excited?

May: well not really. I don't know anyone from hoenn besides you and like two other kids on PMO that I don't talk to anymore.

Brendan: well I bet you can make new friends. There are a lot of friendly trainers here

May: well im not a trainer, remember

Brendan: oh shoot

Brendan: im sorry

Brendan: but hey, maybe we can meet up sometime

May: well if you're a trainer, maybe you'll meet my dad. He's gonna take over the Petalburg gym in september

Brendan: WHAT NO WAY

Brendan: that's so cool! Is that where you're moving? We could totally meet up

May: no… im moving to the middle of unownland

Brendan: what town? Or is it unincorporated?

May: you probably wouldn't know it

Brendan: haha try me, I live in the smallest town in the world

May: well it's even farther south than Oldale

Brendan: Littleroot?!

May: yeah lol how'd you guess

Brendan: MAY I LIVE THERE

May: no way you're pulling my slowpoke tail

Brendan: that's a funny saying but NO IM SERIOUS :D

May: holy shit I don't even believe you

Brendan: believe it! There's a house that just sold on my street, I bet it's yours

May: …whats the street name

Brendan: Wailmer way!

May: oh my fucking arceus we're gonna be neighbors

Brendan: YAYYYYYY

May: so there's like 18 people there right? Are there any other people our age, like 13-17?

Brendan: there's a few kids under 10 and a lot of older people, I'm the only teenager

May: well thats lame

Brendan: better than none right? And now theres two of us!

May: haha yeah. And you probably know prof Birch, right? I was hoping he'd convince my parents to let me get a Pokemon

Brendan: may

May: ?

Brendan: professor birch is my DAD

May: okay now I really don't believe you

Brendan: I'm serious! Earlier he was distracting me with new info about my partner, mudkip

May: ok wow now I'm actually excited

Brendan: Me too! Do you have DOL messenger?

May: yea I do actually but I don't use it much

Brendan: ok well you're gonna use it a lot now. Add me with my same username, wurmple00

May: cool I'll do that

Brendan: im so excited im gonna scream!

May: haha dont do that

Brendan: lol all our Pokémon our awake, I wont bother anyone

May: whatever floats ur lapras. I gotta start sorting my stuff so add me on DOL, bugchic99

Brendan: haha do u like bugs or something?

May: I used to be a bug catcher but I had to release them all or give them to my friends. Its an old username

Brendan: haha ok. Ill talk to you tomorrow, im so glad we became friends!

May: me too 😊 see ya later wurmple

Brendan: bye!

**[ MAYMEL88 has LOGGED OFF ]**

**[ WURMPLE00 has LOGGED OFF ]**


	2. Digital Dragonites

The first thing May did when she logged off of PMO was run into the living room, which was just down the hall from her bedroom.

_At least the new house will have two stories, _she thought.

"Mom, Dad, I finally found someone!" she said as she walked in.

Norman and Caroline Melbourne looked away from the TV set at their daughter. They seemed disgruntled at being interrupted from watching the Goldenrod news.

"What do you mean?" her mother asked in a monotone voice.

"I _mean,_ I met someone on PMO who lives in Littleroot Town! His name is Brendan and he's _Professor Birch's son!_" See dad, I told you!"

Norman shrugged. "I was the one who told you that Littleroot _does_ in fact exist! But hey, that's exciting. I can't wait to meet the kid, especially since he's Ed's son."

"Me neither! He's fifteen just like me and he trains Pokémon!" May had never been so excited in her life, well, maybe besides one other time. It was almost embarrassing.

Mr. and Mrs. Melbourne exchanged a stern glance, then Caroline spoke.

"May, how about you start sorting your belongings tonight? We need to get a head start so we're packed by next month."

May's excitement faltered a little. "Uh, well yeah, I was about to do that. I just thought you'd be interested in what I had to say…"

"Yeah, that's great. Hopefully now you'll be more eager to pack up your things." Norman stated coolly as he and his wife turned back to watching television.

The young girl opened her mouth to speak but turned away instead, retreating back to her room.

_Jeez, what was that? I thought they'd be a little happier for me, especially Dad. _May pondered the exchange as she closed the bedroom door behind her. _He seemed excited the other day when talking about Brendan's dad. You'd think he'd be elated now that I'll be hanging out with the guy's son._

May sat down on the floor next to her bookshelf, scanning the worn spines for titles she knew she wouldn't read again.

"_Children's' History of Kanto", "a Johto ABC book", man, some of these are old…_ she began pulling books out and stacking them into a "donate" pile beside the door. Until…

"_The Famed Flora and Fauna of the Hoenn Region" … whoa! I don't even remember this one! _May abandoned her task and began to sift through the anthology.

Nearly an hour later, the curious teen had read pages upon pages about the geography and vivid ecosystems of the place she would soon call home. She took strong interest in the Mudkip line, eating up every single fact about the Mud Fish Pokémon.

_These guys are wicked cool! Brendan must be such a great trainer…_

After closing the book, May sat on her bed, staring out her window. The silhouette of the mysterious Ilex Forest loomed against the moonlight in the distance, the sight bringing upon great nostalgia and regret.

May wondered just how much she and Brendan would be able to do and explore together once she arrived in Hoenn. After all, he had been training Mudkip for nearly five years, and May had never gotten a Pokémon of her own…

_What if he leaves on a gym challenge right after I move there? Then I'll be totally alone! _She thought, falling back onto her pillow. _And if he ends up challenging Dad… that'll be so awkward._

Excitement and worry filled May's thoughts as she fell into an accidental, dreamless sleep.

* * *

**The next day…**

May woke up dazed, trying to remember when she had fallen asleep.

_Oh, right. Anxiety must've knocked me out again._

After changing into a fresh set of clothes, washing her face and brushing her teeth, May sat at the desk chair in front of her computer. As the machine booted up, she hurriedly tied her caramel-colored hair into a messy ponytail.

Nearly ten minutes later, after the dial-up screeched and bleeped, her homepage loaded.

**POKéMON MULTIPLAYER ONLINE – THE FORUM**

**FEATURED MASTER 7/14/04 – STEVEN STONE, HOENN REGION**

May blinked at the homepage's wallpaper for the day. It looked like a heavily airbrushed photo of the real-life champion of the Hoenn League, Steven.

_I doubt he's actually that hot irl, _she thought with an eye-roll.

May noted to read the article on Steven later, after she'd checked in with Brendan. Might as well read up on the Hoenn league. She opened up and searched her bookmarks tab for Dragonite Online.

_Let's see… ah, here it is. DOL._

She clicked the link, the familiar, cartoony Dragonite flapping its wings as the webpage loaded. Somehow, May remembered her login credentials even though she hadn't used DIM – Dragonite Instant Messenger – in over a year.

_I should use this with more PMO people, _she thought.

**1 MESSAGE REQUEST – WURMPLE00**

**1 BUDDY REQUEST – WURMPLE00**

_Oh dang, he beat me to it._

May accepted Brendan's requests and first opened up his user profile.

**NAME: It's Brendan Birch, boyeeeee**

_Haha, what a clown._

**Profile Photo:**

May took a good look at the kid's avi. He seemed like the average teen guy, but his hair was… white?

_I hope that's a wig._

**Gender: Male**

**Age: 15 (07/17/88)**

**Location: it's a secret **

**Interested in: Hot singles in your area**

_Arceus, why…_

**Likes: Mudkipz, battling, trolling teh forums**

_I seriously hope he's joking._

**Dislikes: Mean ppl, mt. chimney, that guy who does the 5pm radio shows, also that weird kid from verdanturf town**

**Status: torchic wing, torchic wing, houndoom and baloney, torchic and macaroni, chillin with my homies**

_Okay, this guy tries too hard. _

May decided to stop scouring this guy's cringe-tastic profile and opened up the message he'd sent her.

**10:35 PM KJT, 7/13/04**

** Wurmple00: **hi may! Boy, I can tell you haven't used DIM in a while. Your profile made me laugh! XD

_Shit._

May exited the chat window and loaded up her profile

**Name: Mayeee but I don't really like my name, call me Max**

_That's gonna get changed._

**Profile photo:**

It was an old photo of her and Bugsy, probably in Slowpoke Well a few years prior. The quality was so bad that both kids looked like blobs of pixels.

**Gender: Female**

** Age: 15 (09/01/88)**

** Interested in: No one. -_-**

_So edgy. Ugh._

**Likes: Bug pokémon, my best friend (buggomuggo13), legendaries, forests, pokémon in general, PMO**

_That hasn't changed much._

**Dislikes: Rules, stuck up ppl, being bored**

** Status: I might get to meet Red and Blue from Kanto today ahhhhhh . but I just wanna meet Green**

_That was a cool day, but I'm gonna change this up._

**Name: May, just May**

** Profile photo:**

May uploaded a nice photo of herself feeding a Slowpoke berries just outside of town.

**Gender: Female**

** Age: 15 (09/01/88)**

** Location: Johto, moving to Hoenn**

** Interested in: People who actually like me**

** Likes: Pokémon, nature, freedom, PMO**

** Dislikes: Rules, boredom**

** Status: When will my life begin?**

_Still kinda edgy, but that's who I am._

May reopened the chat window with Brendan, rereading his message.

**Wurmple00**: hi may! Boy, I can tell you haven't used DIM in a while. Your profile made me laugh! XD

She replied, then opened another tab in the background to read the PMOF article on Steven Stone.

**Bugchic99: **hey, brendy. I just updated my profile so you cant make fun of me anymore. Yours is still a hoot, tho.

Less than a minute later, a pixelated Dragonite cry sounded through May's speakers.

_Dang, already?_

She switched tabs and read the response:

**11:08 AM KJT, 7/14/04**

**Wurmple00: **haha good morning max 😉 i like your new pfp, is that a slowbro?

**Bugchic99: **slowpoke, actually. I cant believe ur online already

**Wurmple00: **oh my dad always wakes me up around 7 to go on one of his "nature walks", so ive been up for a while. Plus, I keep my computer on p much 24/7 so I can get notifications.

**Bugchic99: **wait really? That's rly bad for ur computer

**Wurmple00: **its convenient tho

**Bugchic99: **dude. Ur hardware should be restarted regularly, its like how people and pokemon need sleep to be refreshed. Doesn't that make ur system like… mega slowpoke?

**Wurmple00: **haha u should change ur name to slowpokechic99, ur obsessed with em

**Bugchic99: **whatever. Anyway, how goezit? I found a hoenn book last night while sorting my stuff and I read tons about mudkip and other mons im gonna meet

**Wurmple00: **oh sweet! Well actually my dad and I helped compile some research for one of those things a few years back. If the publication date is 2000 or later, I bet you can find his name in the contributors' section.

**Bugchic99: **srsly? I'll go check now, brb

May swiveled her chair around and practically leapt across her room to the bookshelf. She soon noticed, however, that the pile of books she'd taken out the night before was missing.

_What in the world?_

The girl quickly bolted out of her room and down the hallway to the kitchen, where her father was reading the _Johto Journeyer_, a newspaper popular with his generation of trainers. He was wearing his work boots, May noticed, so Norman had probably already been to town that morning.

"Dad," she began, nearly out of breath. "did you happen to see a pile of books I had laid out on my floor?"

Norman set down the newspaper. "The donate pile, right? The one next to your old clothes?"

"Yeah…"

"Then, yes. I took all that stuff down to the donation center connected to the daycare near Goldenrod. Why do you ask?"

May began to pick at her fingernails, avoiding eye contact with her father. "Um, was there a Hoenn book in that stack?"

Norman looked thoughtful then shrugged. "Heck if I know. That'd be a shame, you could afford to read up on Hoenn before we move."

The girl clenched her fists rather than lashing out, then turned back towards her room.

"Never mind, then," she choked out.

For the next twenty minutes, May tore apart her bookshelf and half of her room to search for that awesome book. No luck. It was gone, and she didn't dare embarrass herself by trekking through Ilex to ask the daycare couple to find and return it. She once again collapsed onto her bed with a sigh that sounded more like a Magcargo blowing off a day's worth of steam.

The DIM notification sent May bolt upright again, reminding her of the reason behind her futile search. She rolled off the bed and plopped down at her desk, perpendicular to her unmade, unruly bed.

**11:43 AM KJT, 7/14/04**

**Wurmple00: **u found it yet? It's been a p long time hehe

May tried to brush off her anger as she typed her next message.

**Bugchic99: **nope. I think the 'rents lumped it in with my donation pile and got rid of it.

**Wurmple00: **damn, tough luck. Theres lots of cool research about hoenn online and in libraries, u should check it out sometime

**Bugchic99:** yea ill probably do that

**Wurmple00: **ok so ur pfp right

**Bugchic99: **?

**Wurmple00: **profile pic

**Bugchic99:** I know what it means, what r u saying bout it

**Wurmple00: **u look so p

_Oh Arceus I hope he's not flirting with me ugh I hate e-boys_

**Wurmple00: **pALE WOW

**Bugchic99: **…

**Bugchic99: **u know im from Johto right

**Wurmple00: **yeah haha but do u even go outside?!

**Bugchic99: **im literally outside in the pic

**Wurmple00: **oh right

**Wurmple00: **yet here u are on the internet

**Bugchic99: **so r u

**Wurmple00: **got me there ahahaha

**Bugchic99: **ur silly. But yeah no I don't spend much time outside anymore. I don't have much reason to, I got no pokémon to train

**Wurmple00: **oh yeah I forgot abt that

**Wurmple00: **well since its just u and me here, can you elaborate on that?

**Bugchic99: **you are very forgetful, wurmple. And uh I just met u yesterday idk why I should do that

**Wurmple00: **well we're gonna be neighbors right? Maybe even adventure partners. Maybe even more than that

**Bugchic99: **ew gross

**Wurmple00: **I meant friends, duh

**Bugchic99: **youre about as stealthy as squad of sentret in spring

**Wurmple00: **u overthink things more than a medicham in meteor falls

**Bugchic99: **maybe someday we will understand each other

**Wurmple00: **I gotta hear ur tragic backstory first

**Bugchic99: **ok fine, ya donphan. rollin into every1s business. Heres the abridged version. My dad let me run an errand to goldenrod city when I was 9, almost 10. He sent one of our family pokémon with me so I could defend myself in the ilex forest, which separates my town from the big city. Long story short, I got lost and didn't return with the mon. so my parents got primeape-pissed and decided I wasn't responsible enough to become a trainer and ive been a defenseless, partnerless individual ever since

**Bugchic99: **happy now

**Wurmple00: **no… dude that all sounds awful

**Bugchic99: **yea no shinx

**Wurmple00: **Im sad about the mon but ur 15 now and they still don't trust u? I call taurosshit. Ive done some stupid stuff over the years and yea it disappoints my family but thats what happens when ur a kid. U messed up big time but that shouldnt be a life sentence

**Bugchic99: **yeah tell that to the 'rents. Oh also, my dad told me he knows ur dad from when they were kids. He was all excited ab moving to littleroot until I told him u were a trainer, it seems. Same w my mom. Idk what their problem is

**Wurmple00: **well I don't know any of u personally yet so im gonna wait to judge character, but guess what

**Bugchic99: **wut

**Wurmple00: **im gonna try to convince ur family to let u get a mon of ur own. U can either catch somethin small outside of town, or I bet my dad would at least loan u a rare one.

**Bugchic99: **forreal? brendan that'd be AMAZING

**Wurmple00: **you bet. I like you a lot, May, you seem like you care a lot about training and taking care of mon. especially with how experienced u are in PMO. Its different than irl, but you definitely have what it takes

**Bugchic99: **u really think so? Its just a game

**Wurmple00: **yeah, a game that our own regions' CHAMPIONS wanted to be in. whaddya say we go train up our teams and talk over on PMO?

**Bugchic99: **yeah, id like that a lot! And maybe u can tell me about hoenn's rare pokémon while we're at it

**Wurmple00: **hell yeah! I sent u a PMO friend request last night, just accept it and we can meet up

**Bugchic99: **sounds good. But I gotta go read something on the forums first…

After logging off DIM, May excitedly read through the front-page article on Steven Stone. It was a Farfetch'd thought, but May couldn't help but visualize herself facing the Hoenn league champion a few years down the road with a real-life team of her own.

_That team's gonna be headed off by the first 'mon I get next month… this move is gonna be the best thing to ever happen to me._


	3. Johto Jetlag

The next month went by at a confusing, tumultuous rate. If you asked her, May wouldn't have been able to say if the time before the move went Rapidash-fast or at a melting Muk's pace. She spent each day wondering and worrying about what would happen once her family arrived in Hoenn.

May and Brendan spent nearly every day discussing all their plans for when she finally moved. Day trips to nearby cities, camping out on Route 103, maybe even saving up for some ultra balls once May became a trainer.

* * *

**5:02 PM, KJT, 8/01/04**

**Bugchic99: **I still cant believe ur online this often. Do u have any friends irl?

**Wurmple00: **eh… maybe 1 or 2. U know how small littleroot is, hehe

**Bugchic99: **i mean, same here…

**Wurmple00: **that's gonna change this month! U and I will be instant friends and we can meet soooooo many trainers between here and Petalburg. Its gonna be amazing!

* * *

She made sure to spend some time with her old friend Bugsy before the fated day in August. The night before the move, the two of them found themselves sitting in a tree on the very edge of town.

"So, this is it, then?" Bugsy asked, looking off into the distance with a misty gaze. "My best friend's probably leaving Johto forever."

"Aw, come on," May nudged her friend, trying to avoid the sadness that was creeping up on her like a horde of hungry Haunter. "Hoenn's only four hours away by plane. I'll probably come back to visit, especially when I'm old enough to travel on my own."

Bugsy turned to face May, reflecting on all the memories they'd shared over the past decade. "Do you think we can battle when you come back?"

May looked down at her feet which were swinging back and forth below the branch she was sitting on, then looked up at her friend with determination.

"Of course we can. I told you what Brendan promised me, and I'm gonna make it happen. If all goes well, I'll get your gym badge, beat the Johto league and face off against Lance!"

"That's a crazy goal, you know. It might take you longer than you think to get to that level; life is a lot more difficult than PMO."

"Yeah, I know. But I seriously think I'm destined for greatness and so does Brendan. I just have to get through my parents."

Bugsy rolled his eyes knowingly and threw himself out of the tree, landing solidly on the ground below.

"Let's head back, future champion of the world. I have a few things to give you before you leave tomorrow."

* * *

On that bright morning in August, May left her Azalea Town home for the last time. She carried her necessities in a backpack and suitcase; the computers and furniture would be shipped to them overseas.

_Can't wait to use a sleeping bag for a week once we get to the new house, _she thought. _And I'm gonna be without my computer, too!_

The hope was that May wouldn't need her PC nearly as much if she began adventuring in Hoenn.

May double- and triple-checked her bags for everything she wanted to have on her person during the flight from Petalburg International Airport to Littleroot Town.

_Gameboy, check. Metapod Touch and headphones, check. Cheese crackers, check. Reusable water bottle to save the Squirtles, yep. Kurt's custom Pokéballs that Bugsy so generously gifted me… heck yeah. _May was on top of the world at the thought of becoming a trainer just like her old friend. _Snubbull plushie…_ May looked away from her opened backpack and saw the closest thing she owned to a Pokémon sitting on the kitchen counter. _There you are! Looks like I'm set._

Saying goodbye to Azalea wasn't something May had thought much about until that morning. As the Melbourne family locked up their house for the last time, May took it all in. The fresh, wild scents coming from the forest, the townspeople and their Pokémon out for their morning strolls…

_But this isn't the end! I'll be back someday to visit… and challenge the gym!_

In the car, May tuned out her parents' conversation by popping in her earbuds and listening to the Volbeatles.

_Man, it's hard enough finding people who like this old Galar music in Johto… it's probably obsolete down in the boonies of Hoenn._

The last thing she saw before dozing off was the sight of the Slowpoke Well, her childhood stomping grounds, just outside of town, as "The Long and Winding Route" lulled her to sleep.

* * *

It took nearly eight hours to arrive in Littleroot Town.

45 minutes from Azalea to Violet City's Airport (Goldenrod's didn't fly to Hoenn)

1 hour before boarding

4-hour flight to Petalburg's Airport

Half an hour to get a rental car

An hour and a half drive to Littleroot town, with a short stop at McDonphan's

_Fast food is the only thing Johto ever offered the world, _May thought disdainfully. Ever since landing at PIA, the girl couldn't help but feel self-conscious of how she looked compared to the upper-class citizens of the tropical region.

_I thought Slateport was the celebrity town!_

The flight itself had tired May out considerably, but she hadn't been able to sleep the entire time.

_We're way too high in the sky oh my Arceus_

_Last time I flew I wasn't scared at all, what the heck?_

_Oh Shinx oh Shinx what was that bump we're gonna fall out of the sky_

"Flying is thousands of times safer than driving, May," her father had explained, "mostly because there's no crazy intersections in the sky. So stop worrying!"

_If only it were that easy._

After a journey that seemed to go on for decades, May's family finally arrived in the humble abode of Littleroot, Hoenn. Stepping out of the car, stretching out her travel-weary Jellicent-legs, May took in a huge breath of fresh air. Rather than bringing a musky forest smell, the breeze carried aromas of unfamiliar, sweet grass and a tinge of salt.

_We're not that close to the ocean, are we?_

Their home on Wailmer Way was only accompanied by two other houses, one of which was connected to the Pokémon lab. The rest of the townsfolk seemed to live on the outskirts of town; for a small population, Littleroot had considerable area.

_I bet that's Brendan's house connected to the lab…! _May guessed, excitement bubbling up in her chest like a Slugma after a long nap.

After retrieving her suitcase from the back of the rental car, May hurried over to her parents who were unlocking the door to the new house.

"Mom, Dad, I told Brendan I'd go meet him when we got here. Can I go over to his house?"

Caroline Melbourne turned to face her daughter as her husband fiddled with the keys.

"Only after you help us bring everything inside and unpack, May. And we'd like to meet Mr. Brendan's parents first, isn't that right, Norman?"

May's father nodded as he finally opened the door. She'd hardly looked at the house until now as she looked up to take it all in.

_Whoa! Compared to our house, I mean, our old house, this place is huge!_

Stepping inside, May felt like the rooms on the first floor stretched on forever, especially without any furniture to fill the space.

"Your room is on the second floor, right across from the staircase, May." Norman told her as he closed the front door behind them. "Go unpack what you can and we can go meet Brendan's family."

"Okay!" she answered excitedly, rolling her suitcase behind her as she started for the stairs. "Oh, wait. I left Snubbull in the car."

May dropped her luggage beside the staircase and bolted back outside to where the car was still unlocked in the unusually long driveway. She opened one of the backdoors and quickly snatched up her pink plushie pal.

"Haha, I couldn't forget about you!"

She started back towards the door until she heard the patter of quick footsteps coming down the sidewalk. Before May could turn around, an excited voice greeted her ears.

"MAY! May, is that you?!" she turned around with quick alarm and was met with the sight of a lanky teenage boy about her age with a strange white tuft bobbing up and down atop his head.

"Whoa, you startled me, hyper-voice!" May kept holding onto her plushie as she ran down the driveway to greet her new friend. "Hey, Brendy. It _is _you, right?"

Brendan ran up to meet her, sweat beading on his forehead.

"Yep, in the flesh! Haha. Nice Snubbull." Before May could react, Brendan flung his arms around her in one of the most voracious hugs she'd ever experienced. "I'm so happy to finally meet you, Bugchic!"

"Me too," May replied coolly as she broke away from the embrace, still clutching her plushie with one hand. She got a good look at Brendan, who didn't look much different from his DIM profile photo. Upon closer examination, however, May noticed that beneath his strange headpiece, Brendan did in fact sport some very nice, chocolate-brown locks.

"So, you don't have white hair!" May stated, trying not to laugh.

"Huh?! You thought this thing was my hair?" Brendan pulled the strange accessory off his head, revealing some alarmingly messy hat hair. "_This _is my hair, Cinco de Mayo. I just like to look like a Delibird every day." He replaced his hat quickly and winked. "A Johto Pokémon… feel at home yet?"

May stood in place, still puzzled. "Uh… you're not serious about that, are you? And that nickname was atrocious"

Brendan grinned, his smile brighter and warmer than the shining Hoenn sun. "Of course not, Miltank-May-I. The headbandy-elastic part keeps sweat out of my eyes, and the loosey-Zangoosey white tuft reflects the sun and keeps me cool."

"Huh. I'd call that innovative if you'd stop calling me names, ya goof."

"You make it _so easy _though, shorty. Maybe I should just call you Flabébé, you're so small!"

May rolled her eyes without humor. "Shut the Shuckle up. I gotta go unpack some things, maybe we can hang out later, okay?" She turned to go back inside, worried about keeping her parents waiting.

"Haha, 'Shuckle'? That's a new one! You're even cooler in real life, May. Hurry up so I can show you around town!" Out of the corner of her eye, May could see Brendan bolting back down the street towards his house…. _Backwards._

_He's got more energy than a Pikachu on Pecha berries… but I like him._ May thought as she hurried inside.

Before she could lug her bags upstairs, May's mother strode over to her from what would soon be the living room.

"May, sweetie, was that your friend out there?" she asked. May tried to hide her annoyance that her mother had observed the exchange, likely from the large bay window by the door.

"Yeah, that was Brendan. He said I can come over later, once I'm done unpacking."

Caroline thought for a moment then spoke.

"Well, that Mr. Brendan certainly looked tall. How old did you say he was again?"

"He just turned sixteen last month, so he's not even two months older than I am."

"Okay, then… how about we have something to eat first before we go over and meet his family?"

"Mom, we just ate on the way here."

"Oh, right," Caroline conceded, quickly glancing over at Norman who had appeared beside her.

"It's alright," he added to the conversation, directing his words at May, "We can go visit them as soon as we're all unpacked. It'll be great to see Ed again."

May unpacked the few belongings she had with her onto the floor of the empty room that would hopefully soon seem like a home. She unrolled a little red sleeping bag next to the large, double window, setting her folded clothes in a neat pile right next to it. Before heading downstairs, May decided to switch her white t-shirt with a red one, then put on the admittedly cute headband she'd bought at the airport.

When she reached the bottom of the polished wooden staircase, May was met by her mother who was holding something strange in one of her hands.

"May, I have something for you." Caroline stated as she handed her daughter a small device with a shiny new screen.

"Huh? Is this some kind of new PokéGear?" May asked as she took the machine into her own hands. It had a flip-out keyboard and looked more like what the Galar kids from online called "cell phones" than anything she'd ever seen.

"It's A PokéNav! Your father and I decided to get you one so you can always keep in contact with us and maybe some new friends as well. After all, Dad is going to be spending most of his time in Petalburg starting this month."

"Oh, wow…" May was astonished that her parents would buy her something like this. PokéNav was developed and widely used in the Hoenn region, she remembered hearing from Brendan. Although it didn't seem to catch on in other regions, May knew this was some cutting-edge technology. "Thank you so much, wow!"

_Maybe now that I have this… my parents might trust me to leave on an adventure…!_

* * *

The Melbourne family soon made their way down the street to the Birch residence, a house slightly older than their own on the same street, but connected to a gleaming Pokémon research lab. The men of each house exchanged nostalgic pleasantries, catching up about their recent work as Trainer and Professor, respectively. Their wives got to talking about Littleroot, its history, and the battling and contest culture of the Hoenn region.

May and Brendan were already embarking on their first adventure.

"Dad, can I show May the lab?"

"Sure, Brendan! But I have to ask that you stay on the nursery side and avoid the experiment rooms. We can give May a full tour another day."

"That's fine, thanks!"

The professor's son quickly took May by her hand and led her through the two sets of heavy double doors that connected his house to the most impressive lab in all of Hoenn.

Once inside, May's eyes widened at what she saw in the "nursery" of Professor Birch's lab. The glass ceiling of the greenhouse-like room towered over them high overhead, and rows and rows of terrariums, aquariums and the like lined the sprawling mosaic-tile floors.

Her cool exterior melted, May turned to Brendan, her eyes glowing with the light of a thousand Lanturns.

"Brendan, this is amazing… I can't believe you live here!"

The boy scratched the back of his head, blushing. "It _is_ pretty cool. Can I show you around?"

"Do I even need to say?"

Brendan and May began to walk leisurely through the rows of diverse Pokémon habitats, something that to May resembled a hi-tech zoo. They stopped in front of a little forest biome, a vent facing out towards them through an otherwise clear case of glass.

May stared, unblinking into the mini habitat. The three or more trees closest to the glass were teeming with Pokémon, mostly what appeared to be bug-types. She watched as a pair of Butterfree flitted to and fro, tiny cocoon Pokémon spun webs in the branches, and…

A beautiful color-palette of a Pokémon opened its patterned wings as it flew from tree to tree, sipping sap from its long, tubular mouth.

The familiar forest scent emanated from the enclosure, sending a chill of familiarity up May's spine. It was just like home, just like the good old days… She instinctively reached for the net on her back only to realize that her bug-catching years were long gone.

Watching the creature fly with more grace than anything in the tank, May whispered to her companion without taking her eyes off of its majestic wings.

"What… what is that one?" she pointed delicately at the flying bug, its crystalline, catlike eyes shining in the surprisingly soft light of the enclosure.

"That's a Beautifly. It's the Butterfly Pokémon of Hoenn, like how Kanto and Johto have Butterfree." Brendan looked over at May who didn't seem to notice him watching her. "You seem pretty interested in it."

May refrained from touching the glass, but leaned in so close that her nose was almost touching the barrier between herself and the magnificent bug.

"I'd heard of Beautifly from PMO, but… it's so much more amazing in the real world…" Breaking up her wonder, though, was an anxious thought that crossed her mind.

"Aren't these terrariums a little small for them, though?" she asked. "Do you keep them here all day?"

Brendan smiled with a twinkle in his eye as May faced him, concern plastered on her face.

"We keep them here most of the time, yeah. But only until their rehabilitation or our research on them is done." Brendan moved to the other side of May then opened the cover on a control panel that she hadn't yet noticed.

"These Pokémon, part of the Wurmple and Caterpie families, are still being researched, so for the time being we can do this." After pressing no more than two buttons, Brendan stepped back and watched the inside of the enclosure render a background, complete with an extended, luscious forest and sunset over a horizon.

May stifled a gasp. "Wait, what? That's just a background, right?!"

Brendan chuckled a little. "Just watch."

The two of them observed the bug Pokémon noticing the change in their environment. The Beautifly and two Butterfree excitedly took off from their perches into the distance, landing in trees that seemed impossibly far away.

"What?! No way, dude, that's amazing." May ran around the corner that the terrarium sat on, checking to see if the tank itself had expanded. It was still the same size.

"Pretty cool, right?" Brendan followed his friend around the corner, his heart full from seeing May's reaction to his family's work.

But May was already staring into another enclosure, smaller than the previous but still containing lush, forest elements. A tiny gecko Pokémon was poking its head out of a verdant, green bush, its eyes fixed upon the girl observing him. She crouched down to the floor, her head as close to the glass as it could be without touching it.

"And who's this little guy?" May whispered, sitting perfectly still. Before Brendan could answer, the curious creature crawled out of the foliage and stood right in front of May, sniffing at the glass between them.

"Whoa!" Brendan whisper-yelled, sitting down at May's side. "That little guy is called Treecko. He prefers to keep to himself, in his own tank, but… He seems interested in you! I've never seen him act this way before, this is crazy!"

May carefully lifted a hand to press up against the glass, then stopped, keeping her eyes on the Pokémon.

"Can I touch the glass?"

"Sure. Just don't tap it, you might scare him."

The girl pressed her palm against the glass, her clear blue eyes as wide as Treecko's yellow ones. The creature sniffed at it for a second, then realized a barrier was in the way. He then stuck one spiky, sticky hand on the glass right where May's was, then propelled himself up the wall with awesome speed.

May and Brendan stood up, looking at the Treecko now hanging from the ceiling of the tank.

"Look at him go!" May shouted, amazed at the little guy's acrobatics.

"Isn't he great?"

The two watched Treecko show off without saying much, just enjoying the awesomeness of Pokémon as well as each other's company.

"Does Treecko really prefer to be alone in there?" May thought out loud. "He seemed really interested in us."

"For the most part, yeah. But he seemed to like you a lot!" Brendan replied, still smiling.

_Aw, Brendy. His face must be so tired after grinning that wide all day long, _May thought, giggling internally.

"But my dad and I had to put Treecko here by himself mostly because he took a… uh, culinary liking to the Wurmple family back in that last biome."

"Oh, okay." May answered nonchalantly, watching the wood gecko scaling up and down the tiny trees in its habitat. "Are you still doing research on him?"

"Hm, we're about done with Treecko. He's pretty rare, so it was really cool being able to study him."

"I bet. Do you think maybe I could…"

A loud two-tone beep echoed through the Pokémon lab. May nearly jumped, but Brendan seemed unfazed. The voice of Professor Birch followed:

"Brendan, it's almost 10 o'clock. May's parents say it's about time for them to head home, can you lock up the lab and bring her back to the house?"

May realized it was an intercom of some sort and settled down. She watched as Brendan held down a button on the wall next to Treecko's enclosure and spoke into a speaker than was almost camouflaged from sight.

"Sure thing, dad. We'll be back in a few minutes."

May's heart sank a little. _It's only 10! Jeez, Mom and Dad, let me live a little._

Brendan walked her back to the double doors that separated the lab from the house, through one set of them, then flipped a few switches on the control panel on the wall. The lights flickered off and the lab soon became illuminated only by the blues and greens of the various Pokémon enclosures.

"Oooooh… all we need now are some Lavender Town tones!" Brendan teased as May's silhouette visibly tensed.

"Ugh, stop it! I didn't even know you Hoenn kids knew about that stupid legend."

"The internet is a powerful tool." Brendan double checked that all the lights had been turned off and that the security system was activated before locking up for the night.

_Man, if he isn't any good at battles, this guy would be a damn good Professor someday._

* * *

As May tried to fall asleep in her flimsy sleeping bag, visions of the amazing Pokémon she'd met that day filled her head.

_Those beautiful bugs… The IMPOSSIBLE freakin' lab… _

_ Treecko!_

May had used the beta browser on her new PokéNav to look up information on the little guy. It was more than just cool and fascinating in its current form… May had discovered that someday, the little gecko would become a fearsome Sceptile with some of the strongest grass-type moves to ever exist.

_Someday, Treecko… You and I could be a great team…_


End file.
